he’d wanted to swing by the bakery. He told himself that it was the cherry turnovers that he craved—not staring into the green eyes of the very beautiful baker.
And it didn’t help that when he suddenly stopped bringing the mouthwateringly good baked goods to the office it was noticed by his employees. When he got questioned enough about the lack of treats, he started going to the new bakery, though the service wasn’t nearly as friendly and the turnovers—well, they were dry and overly sweet. And though his staff didn’t say much, the number of leftover pastries at the end of the day said it all.
Though everything in his body wanted to turn around, he kept putting one foot in front of the other. The streets were decorated with garland and on each lamp post was a large wreath with a great big red bow. Shop windows had holiday displays. Some had Santa figurines and others Christmas trees. Everything to put the passerby in the holiday spirit—except for Simon.
However, when he reached the large picture window of the Polka Dotted Bakery, he slowed down. How could he not? The holiday-themed display was literally a work of art—all made out of baked goods.
It was a wintery scene, with a white tree with gingerbread ornaments trimmed with white frosting suspended from it. And beneath the tree was a gingerbread house. Not just four walls and a roof of gumdrops. Someone had gone all out, detailing not a one, not a two, not even a three, but a four-story house decorated with white and pale pink frosting. He didn’t have to guess. He knew it was Pepper’s work. She was quite talented, making the window shutters out of white frosting, and there was even a chimney.
He drew in a deep breath, straightened his shoulders and opened the glass door of the bakery. When he stepped inside, he found it empty. Not one single customer. Sure, it was a little past three in the afternoon, but from what Pepper had told him, there were usually customers streaming in and out of the bakery all day long.
He stepped further into the shop to find the display cases completely full, as though none of the goods had sold that day. How could this be? Pepper, by far, had the best pastries in the city.
“I’ll be right with you.” Her voice was light and friendly, just the way he remembered it before things had spun out of control.
He turned to her, bracing for Pepper’s onslaught of angry words. She knelt down, placing something in the glass display case. When she straightened—when she saw that it was him and when she heard what he’d come here to tell her—he was certain her tone would change drastically.
And then she straightened with a smile on her face. Her beautiful long auburn hair was pulled back in a twist, pinned to the back of her head. When the lights hit her hair, the deep red highlights shone. Her bangs fell to the side of her face and a few wispy curls fell around the nape of her neck. Was this the real reason he’d come here? To have one more look at her—to drink in her beauty?
As recognition flashed in her eyes, her friendly demeanor vanished in a heartbeat, replaced with a distinct frown. “You.” Her green eyes widened with surprise. “What are you doing here?” Then she held up a hand as though stopping him from speaking. “Never mind. I don’t want to know. Just leave before someone sees you here.”
“Pepper, we need to talk.”
She shook her head. “If anyone spots you here, the press with be back. I can’t deal with them. Just go.”
He knew how bad the paparazzi could be when they were chasing what they thought was a story. “I’ve taken precautions so no one knows I’m here.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment. “They’ll still find out. They even dug into my past. My past! People I never thought I’d speak to again were giving interviews about me. Do you know how that invasion of privacy felt?”
“I do. And I’m sorry.” His whole life had been aired in the papers since his business took off. It had been hard, but he was somewhat used to it now. “Just hear what I have to say and then I’ll go.”
She placed her hands on her waist. If looks could vaporize a person, he would be nothing more than mist. Wait. How did she get to be so angry with him? She was the one who had dumped him.
Not that the night would have led anywhere. He didn’t do relationships—not even with the very sweet, very tempting Polka Dotted Baker. He wasn’t cut out to be someone’s boyfriend, much less someone’s husband or worse yet, a father.
Still, she glowered at him. He didn’t move an inch. If this was a struggle of wills, he would win. He’d come here for a purpose. He thought he was doing a nice thing. Now, he was having second thoughts. Still, he was here. And he wasn’t leaving until he’d had his say.
She stared deep into his eyes. “Make it fast.”
“Where are all of your customers?” He sensed something was very wrong. “And why does it look like you haven’t sold anything?”
“Things have changed. I don’t have time to chat. I have work to do.” She moved past him, leaving plenty of room between them so their bodies didn’t touch.
She stepped up to the front door and flipped the sign to Closed. He couldn’t help but notice her craning her neck to gaze up and down the walk, as though checking to see if anyone had spotted him in her shop. As far as he could tell, his ball cap and dark sunglasses had kept his identity under wraps.
“There’s something important I need to tell you.”
She shook her head. “How about we just go back to pretending we don’t know each other? Life was so much easier back then.”
He wished he could rewind time. “It’s too late for that.”
She didn’t say anything as she moved past him and kept going toward the back of the bakery. What he didn’t understand was her hostility. If he’d dumped her, he’d get it. But she’d been the one to end things. Sure, he’d been getting ready to do it, but she’d beaten him to the punch.
He followed her because he still hadn’t told her the reason for his visit. She led him to a small office. The room had vacant white walls, which surprised him after getting to know Pepper’s lively personality and her penchant for decorating. A solitary desk in the room was buried beneath a mountain of paperwork. She grabbed a small quilted backpack with a red-and-white pattern, as well as a digital notebook.
When she turned to the door, she practically ran into him. She glanced up as though she’d gotten lost in her thoughts and had forgotten him. His ego was taking hits left and right. He still wasn’t sure why she was so steamed with him.
She glanced at her wristwatch. “If you came here to talk about the past, don’t. It was a stupid mistake. It won’t happen again.”
If he’d had any doubt about her sincerity, he had his answer. She wanted nothing to do with him. That was a first for him. She certainly was different than everyone else in his life.
And this was why he’d been drawn to Pepper in the first place. She wasn’t a pushover. She wasn’t out to see what he could do for her. She was her own woman, who took life on her own terms.
She placed her things on the counter. After washing her hands, she set to work. Pepper continued to move about the kitchen as though he weren’t even standing there.
“Why are you so mad at me?” He stood at the edge of the large kitchen with all its gleaming stainless
